The 2011 IIHF World Women's Championships was held in April 2011 in Zürich and Winterthur, Switzerland, and took place at Hallenstadion and Deutweg rink. This was the 13th women's championship run by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). The United States were the defending champions and defended their title, capturing their third straight gold medal by defeating Canada 3–2 in overtime on a goal by Hilary Knight. IIHF council member Monique Scheier-Schneider presided over the events. Top Division Preliminary round All times local (CEST/UTC+2) Group A Group B Relegation series Best of three. All times local (CEST/UTC+2) Final round Quarterfinals Semifinals 5th place playoff Bronze medal game Gold medal game Scoring leaders List shows the top 10 skaters sorted by points, then goals. GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/− = Plus/minus; PIM = Penalties In MinutesSource: IIHF.com Leading goaltenders Only the top five goaltenders, based on save percentage, who have played 40% of their team's minutes are included in this list. TOI = Time on ice (minutes:seconds); SA = Shots against; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; Sv% = Save percentage; SO = ShutoutsSource: IIHF.com Tournament Awards Media All-Stars Goaltender: Defense: , Forwards: , , Most Valuable Player: Best players selected by the directorate: Best Goaltender: Best Forward: Best Defenceman: Best players of each team Best players of each team selected by the coaches. Division I The following teams took part in the Division I tournament which was held in Ravensburg, Germany, from April 11 to April 16. The winner of the group was promoted to the Top Division for the 2012 championships, while the last-placed team in the group was relegated to Division II. On March 29, 2011 Japan withdrew from the tournament due to the 2011 Japan earthquake. They retained their position in 2012's Division I, and the 5th placed team was relegated. was promoted to Top Division for the 2012 IIHF Women's World Championship. was relegated to Division II (renamed Division I B). Division II The following teams took part in the Division II tournament which was held in Caen, France. The winner of the group, Czech Republic was promoted to Division I for the 2012 championships, while the last-placed team in the group, North Korea was relegated to Division III. Prior to the start of the tournament the North Korean national team announced they would